We are much happier with Sweet Baby James' sweet scent these days! Especially because his sweet scent is the smell of the chrism of a holy sacrament! James had his soul cleaned up on Saturday at his baptism. Here we are afterwards enjoying his sweet oiled head (which still hasn't been washed because I keep sniffing it!). Now the top of this newborn baby's head really does smell like freedom-- the freedom of a new soul and a new life in Christ-- free from sin and basking in the grace of the sacraments provided to us by Jesus through His Church. I think my favorite part of a baptism is when the priest audibly claims the child for Christ... I have such a powerful image of satan scheming for this soul and the sacrament of baptism knocking him down and claiming the battleground of my son's soul for Christ. Reminds me of yet another U2 lyric "And the battle's just begun, to claim the victory Jesus won" (Sunday Blood Sunday for non-U2-holics). Jesus already won the victory over Satan when he sacrificed for us-- it is simply up to us to claim the victory now. And on Saturday Msgr. Martin Laughlin (James' middle namesake) claimed the victory and ensuing freedoms for baby James. The sweet smell of freedom now rules over the stench of rotting umbilical cord (a metaphor for sin and death perhaps?) in our home!
Many thanks to James' second cousins in WV who provided this adorable baptism onesie the night before. More photos of the actual event and surrounding weekend to come.
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